


Time Pressure

by respoftw



Series: 2018 Hurt/Comfort Bingo [25]
Category: Stargate Atlantis
Genre: M/M, Mission Fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-11
Updated: 2018-12-11
Packaged: 2019-09-16 12:36:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,100
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16954161
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/respoftw/pseuds/respoftw
Summary: “You work better when I badger you,” John grinned.  “Badgering and time crunches.  That’s when you do your best work.”





	Time Pressure

**Author's Note:**

> Look at the warning and no offence taken if you nope out. 
> 
> Prompt: Deadline/ Time Bomb

“What did you touch?”

Rodney huffed in exasperation as he shoved Ronon out of the way, making room at the wall-mounted console that controlled the airlock that John had somehow managed to get himself trapped in.

“I didn’t touch anything, McKay, and I would appreciate it if you could get me the hell out of here before I get sucked out into space.”  John drawled, his voice sounding slightly tinny behind the reinforced steel door that separated him from the rest of his team. There was a circle of glass - or whatever the Ancient used that looked like glass - in the middle of the door which let them see in the airlock.  John’s face was practically plastered against it.

“In space, no one can hear you scream,” Ronon said knowingly, a slight smirk on his face.

“I never should have let you watch Alien,” John muttered under his breath before making a face at Ronon.  “I’m just glad that my imminent death amuses you, Chewie.”

“Oh, please,” Rodney snapped, his attention split between the inane conversation going on and hooking his tablet up to the derelict warships control systems.  “Rumours of your imminent death have been greatly exaggerated.”

“So, you can get me out of here, then?” John said, his gaze roaming the door like he was looking for the best places to place some C-4.  Knowing the military’s usual solution to things like this, he probably was. Rodney hoped John at least had enough sense to know that an explosion like that with the state the derelict ship was in would probably send them all into space.  As much as he loathed to admit it, John was significantly smarter than most of the other military members of the expedition. 

The Ancient warship had appeared on their radars during a routine jumper sweep of an unexplored area of the galaxy and despite knowing that he should insist on them returning to Atlantis to bring a full science team, Rodney had been completely unable to resist John’s pleading, pavlovian puppy-dog eyes.

And look where it had got him.  Having to pull a miracle out of his ass and save the day yet again.

“Of course I can get you out of there,” Rodney snapped, already typing furiously on his tablet, interfacing with the ship.  “Have I ever not saved your ass?”

John smiled, his shoulders easing.  Rodney hadn’t even realised they were tight until he saw them drop through the viewing pane in the door.  “No,” John admitted. “You haven’t.”

Rodney felt a pool of warmth in his belly at the unspoken compliment behind John’s agreement.  Pushing it aside, he blustered on. “Yes, well, I don’t plan to start changing that now so shut up and let me work.”

John mimed zipping up his lips and throwing away the key - not that you needed a key for a zip.  Shaking his head, Rodney got back to the ancient system. If he ever met an Ancient engineer he was going to punch them in the face.  What the hell was that subsystem doing in that menu? Cursing quietly, Rodney backtracked to the main menu.

“Colonel Sheppard, Dr McKay, should I join you at your location?”  

Teyla’s voice sounded over the radio but Rodney tuned her out, too intent on making sense of the Ancient’s convoluted menu system.

“Keep looking around,” John said, answering Teyla.  (So much for the locking zip, Rodney thought). “McKay’s got it covered.  Ronon will meet up with you.”

Rodney heard Ronon’s grunt of acknowledgement before he left to join Teyla in the hunt for any technology that they could scavenge.  

“You do have it covered, right?” John asked in a low voice once they were alone.

Startled, Rodney looked up from the interface.  “Hello? Genius? Me? I’d already have you out of there if you didn’t stop badgering me.”  Seeing the real fear in John’s face he turned more serious. “‘I’ve got this,” he promised.

“You work better when I badger you,” John grinned.  “Badgering and time crunches. That’s when you do your best work.”

“Actually, I do my best work when I’m well rested, have had a decent meal and am completely de-stressed,” Rodney said.

“Huh, can’t say I’ve ever seen that,” John teased.

“Can’t say I ever remember that happening,” Rodney agreed.  “At least not since we arrived on Atlantis.”

“It is interesting,” John said mildly.

A great honking alarm chose that moment to start sounding, echoing against the walls around them.  It was joined by a countdown - 90 seconds until the airlock hatch blew open.

“Sometimes a little too interesting,” John yelled, starting to pull uselessly at the locked door.  “What did you touch?”

“Nothing!” Rodney yelled back, trying to make himself heard over the alarm.  “Hang on, just give me a minute.”

“You’ve got exactly 72 seconds,” John shouted. “71, 70.”

“That is not helping!”  Rodney bent his head over the tablet, his heart beating fast.  These stupid Ancients and their redundant filing system. He was dimly aware of Teyla and Ronon arriving, of someone yelling ever decreasing numbers at him and the beating of his own heart pounding loud in his ears until it was almost enough to drown out the sound of the alarm.

“Thirty seconds, McKay,” John yelled.  “You had better not be drawing this out because I said you worked better under a time crunch.”

“I’m gonna blow it,” Ronon said, pulling C-4 from somewhere.

“Do that and we’ll die,” John said, proving once again that he was smarter than the face he showed to the world.

“No one is dying today,” Rodney gritted out between clenched teeth.  He was close. So so close. All he needed was ten more seconds and look at that, he had fifteen.

Swallowing hard, his fingers flew across the keyboard and -

14

13

12

11

10

9

8

‘- he had it!  

“I’ve got it!”  Smiling triumphantly he pressed a key and the alarm silenced.  

Looking up and into John’s hazel eyes he saw relief flood over his friend.  His best friend. More than relief he saw….wow, he - how long had John felt that way about him?  It couldn’t have been as long as he had felt the same way about John - that would be too tragic, that would be - - the door wasn’t opening.

Rodney felt his heart sink, felt his blood rush cold.  The alarm had stopped but the countdown hadn’t.

6

5

“No, no, no, no, no, no,  I had it. I had it. That should have - - “

“Rodney.”

One word.  Soft and fond and filled with regret and  - - 

3

2

1

“No.”

  
  


**Author's Note:**

> Come on, I had to end this series on the most devastating note ever....
> 
> Fun fact, my boyfriend was the one who suggested the twist of Rodney having thought he had saved the day only to realise he hadn't. Yep, there's a reason we've been together for 15 years.
> 
> I promise my next fic will be fluffy!


End file.
